Our client was concerned its newly designed axle wasn’t realizing desired market penetration. Bush Consulting Group was asked to discover why customers weren’t adopting the new design. We evaluated the situation along multiple dimensions - geography, application, channel, and features - to uncover where the value proposition had gone wrong.  

Bush Consulting Group discovered the client’s new product design had missed the mark. Our work revealed that for each segment, fundamental drivers of adoption were different; a universal design would not succeed globally. European construction vehicle manufacturers sought better energy efficiency in response to anticipated regulations while underground mining equipment makers had shifted to prioritize vehicle uptime. For them, the practice of dropping and replacing axles rather than repairing them had quietly become the preferred model.

Our team recommended a rapid adjustment to product design goals in order to better position the product within multiple segments. Braking technology was de-emphasized in exchange for reliability and new part fasteners were designed to simplify change-out. A warranty program was recommended to recover lost market share. Finally, elements of a legacy design, which could be rapidly modified to embody these features, were re-introduced in the interim to minimize the product design cycle.